This time last year, I was attempting to write the preview for our first game of the season whilst dealing with the obstacle of being deep in the Irish countryside. Some things don’t change and I am still having to cope with internet access being drip fed to our cottage in the Wexford hills.

There is also some deja vu in the sense that we are away from home again and that the super white army have a big journey to tackle for the first game.

But of course that’s where all similarities end because we are anticipating a return to proper football instead of the resignation of facing another season in the National League. And that adds a whole new level of excitement in the build up to tomorrow’s game!

Euphoria has been the order of the day for most of the summer with many of us constantly revisiting those momentous events in May. Despite this, there has been a lot of work going on in recruitment of players to ensure that the upcoming season isn’t just a flash in the pan, and we firmly establish ourselves back in the league.

It’s not for me to say how good this recruitment has been though and I suppose it will be results that will ultimately determine how successful our summer signings have been.

Saturday’s opponents have had a huge restructure this summer with 15 new players signing on for Stevenage FC. Despite this, the Lamex Stadium regulars (all 2,500 of them) have been buoyed by a good pre-season and head into the game full of confidence. Residents from England’s very first New Town are being encouraged to flock to Broadhall Way so the attendance can crash through the 4,000 mark. The visiting Super White Army will be hugely beneficial in achieving this goal I think.

Comments from Stevenage manager, Dino Maamria, suggests there is a healthy respect being given to the Rovers. But closer reading of Dino’s quotes makes me think they are expecting a non-league, rough and tumble approach from us. We may surprise them a bit when we turn up wanting to play instead of kick.

All in all, with only one more sleep before battle commences appetites are thoroughly whetted and anticipation is building nicely. Tomorrow is the culmination of three years of blood, sweat and tears in the National League, and is the first step of our new journey to reach League One. I am looking forward to tomorrow and the season as a whole and I have every confidence that our great club is heading in the right direction

Yes its great to be back .and 1.1 away first game back will be a good point .but i think we might just nick all 3 .i think mm and mp have installed confidence back in our club and heading in the right direction .cmon s.w.a

While I’d say a draw would be a result, we said that last time at Torquay and they turned out to be whipping boys for a lot of clubs. Need a win, even the bookies don’t make them that much fav to win at home.

[quote TranmereFan][quote Loyden1][quote TranmereFan]I’m just hoping I don’t get that drunk I couldn’t remember the first game back in the league 😀[/quote]me too train gets to euston 10am ![/quote]

Blimey Loyden! You’re getting there early! ... I don’t leave lliverpool until before 11! But stocking up for the journey to wet the whistle! And grease the journey 😀e]it's the start of my 60th season,hope I can take it steady on the beer like our season a marathon not a sprint.

I looked through the national papers for league 2 reviews and found nothing but Championship and waffle about Premiership new boys. Oh, and an article about Macclesfield. Hopefully there will actually be a report on the game in tomorrow'so papers although likely to be exactly the same report from the one media person in attendance. Not the best start to league football from a reporting perspective.

Hello, long time Rovers fan from Newcastle (1986 onwards). Been reading the board for a few years through thin and thin. Optimistic for a good season. If we can nick a draw today (after what has just transpired) I will feel more comfortable with that prediction.

yes well done rovers coming back from 2 down.. some interesting opening day league 2 results..macc were 2-1 up at swindon going into injury time and swindon win 3-2 with 2 very late goals both penalties in 96th and 98th mins, port vale win 3-0 with ricky miller scoring, crewe 6-0 morecambe and FGR win 4-1 away at grimsby with doidge scoring twice.

Honestly, more positive than I would’ve imagined in that we were on top for large parts of the game so I’m only looking forward. Certainly better in parts against 11 than 10 later on in the game!

First goal was a foul on Smith on the edge of the box but as we have to play to the whistle then bob were very good finishes into the bottom corner that Scotty could do little about!

Cole was manhandled by Nugent around 4-5 times before anything of note happened, it may sound biase as I rate Steve but in this game were we need to keep it tight against big opponents then he was in his own and pulled off a few excellent challenges. Against pacier forwards then let’s maybe try something else.

Briefly, thought Smith was Excellent 1st half. Banks was decent on the ball in the 2nd half and other than that then I’d say Zoum had a good first half and some positive running from Tollit when he came on and he was the player that drew the second yellow for Stevenage.

Positive start we played fairly well for most of the game. They had a very good spell for 10-15 mins in 1st half and scored 2, took both goals well although hint of a foul in build up to 1st.
Thought they had a good spell in 2nd half too but we held out, I thought we went a little deep in their good spells but in general looked ok in possession. I think if we play like that week in week out we should settle comfortably in the top half.
Stevenage are being tipped to do well this season but hard to read that much into 1st games, more important not to lose than anything else

Should have won, could have lost. On that basis, not too unhappy with a point on a sweltering afternoon.

Not sure Stevenage will be anything special this season but you can see the difference from non-league - their defence was physically stronger and their forwards more lively and savvy than we've become used to seeing.

We had some good situations before they scored two very preventable goals - should have cleared our lines earlier for the first, and closed down better for the second. Brilliant passing play, ironically after we almost lost possession at the back, put Nors clean through for his first, then we really went at them after the break. Nors scrambled one home then missed a sitter and almost finished off two cracking crosses - first from Banks, the other a peach from Tollitt. They came close late on too, so a draw probably fair enough.

Plenty of positives to take away, and a few things to work on too. Positives - great spirit to come back in difficult conditions, we looked decent going forward, Nors was lively, Stockton a strong physical presence, Smith looks a real handful and Tollitt showed glimpses of his best after he came on, Zoom looked good too and Scotty was safe. We did look a bit vulnerable through the middle at times and Steeeeeve no longer wins EVERY ball, but nothing to be too alarmed about at this stage - the sharpness will come and Norburn's return will be a positive, though Banks and Harris did grow into the game after a shaky start.

Over 1,000 of the SWA present and in good voice. It's good to be back!

Delighted by the performance today overall. We didn't get down after the 2 goals and stayed positive. Yes we did sit a bit too deep but we were definitely value for the draw..
Cole did ok without really looking like scoring today but showed some nice touches and he and Nors will gel soon I feel sure.
Zoom looked solid as did Caprice and we will be a handful going forward.
On the negative side - the referee had a different interpretation of the rules to me with Stockton being fouled constantly but apparently it's ok to put your arms around a player and wrestle him to the ground.
Now to our negatives - we let them score their goals far too easily and we will need to tighten up big time or else we will be conceding a lot this season. We have to make sure we clear the second ball as well and not think the job is done if we get it out of the box...
All that said this was a very encouraging start to the season and a point well earned.
ps great support naturally from the SWA who drowned out the home fans...

The atmosphere was brilliant because over a thousand of us were contained in one relatively small area. The sound was awesome.
We started well but then gave away the two goals,both good finishes but allowed too much space and time. Getting the goal back before half time was majorly important and we played very well for most of the second half. Norwood's scrambled equaliser and three or four difficult chances could have gained us victory but we could also have lost as they played better with ten men than they had with eleven in the first part of the second half.

I would have brought Mullin on for the last half hour in place of Stockton who was continually being held by their centre back. It made me think again that they[the refs in the National league],in some aspects, play to different rules than those in the EFL.

It thought it was a good performance, a few lessons to learn, particularly in getting to the second ball and clearing your lines. I suspect in NL we would have got away with one if not both of them. I have to admit I feared the worst when the second goal went in, to that point I don't think they had any other chances but we were 2-0 down. The team clearly has a lot of character and got back level and could have gone on to win. The SWA were fantastic today, great atmosphere and got behind the team even at 2-0 down.

generally it takes about a dozen games for things to settle down and the league table to take shape but yesterdays opening games MIGHT give us some early indication as to how things could pan out this season. Lincoln ( who i think will go up ) win away at one of the relegated league 1 sides. MK Dons win away too, Morecambe get stuffed 6~0 and that smacks of a team that are really going to struggle, and my surprise package for this seson, Port Vale start off with a comfortable home win. Not sure how to read into FGRs emphatic opening away day win though.

We will only be able to assess yesterday's performance when we have seen a few more L2 teams and see how Stevenage compare but it was very reassuring to find the team spirit and togetherness still there and enable us to come back from two down and end up unfortunate not to win. On another note, has anyone read the match report in the Echo, was the reporter even there? He says the Stevenage player was given a straight red and several other factual errors . I sometimes despair of the coverage of what is claimed to be a paper covering all of Merseyside!!!

I thought the Stevenage public address announcer was disrespectful to us when he named the teams calling us by just our surnames and them by their full names. I've never heard that before at a match.

Due to the slow queue outside i never actually got in fir the announcememt or the kick off, but agree sounds odd and inconsistent, probably they don't know our names judging by a previous Ollie Norwood quote

I thought the Stevenage public address announcer was disrespectful to us when he named the teams calling us by just our surnames and them by their full names. I've never heard that before at a match.

Due to the slow queue outside i never actually got in fir the announcememt or the kick off, but agree sounds odd and inconsistent, probably they don't know our names judging by a previous Ollie Norwood quote

Hullva trek to the stadium from the station, and I’ve never felt heat like it in the UK as yesterday! Great seeing Norwood with 2 goals on the board already. New signings looked good, Stockton quiet. And Burgers at ground were damn tasty, but that might be because we had far to much alcohol cooling fluids in us! Can’t wait for Saturday!

TranmereFanHullva trek to the stadium from the station, and I’ve never felt heat like it in the UK as yesterday! Great seeing Norwood with 2 goals on the board already. New signings looked good, Stockton quiet. And Burgers at ground were damn tasty, but that might be because we had far to much alcohol cooling fluids in us! Can’t wait for Saturday!

watching the Rovers, cracking weather, beers n burgers, making me dead envious Tranmere Fan..Would luv to have been there with all the SWA watching the mighty TRFC.

Not for the first time since we started pre-season friendlies we have conceded by messing around at the back. Quite frankly MM must sort this out. It happened in three of the pre-season games and then again now in our first league match. We are going to get punished by the better sides every time. Its the same mistake very time. Clear the bloody lines. We are not Barcelona.

Smith was out-jumped for the first and we should have cleared our lines as you say but the second was just Stevenage passing it around us for fun. I called it about 7 passes before the goal that they'd have a shot because of the space they were allowed in the centre to just play it about.

I did however see us start playing from the back in the 2nd half but that was due to us having the numerical advantage.

TranmereFanI’m just hoping I don’t get that drunk I couldn’t remember the first game back in the league 😀

me too train gets to euston 10am !

Blimey Loyden! You’re getting there early! ... I don’t leave lliverpool until before 11! But stocking up for the journey to wet the whistle! And grease the journey 😀

early start very hot so had a few pints round kings cross =not checking train and ending up in Peterborough !.made it back to stevenage after 2pm. All adds to an another adventure following rovers

Haha, good work Loyden, we missed the train we booked back too, overcooked it a little with fun, the nice Virgin trains lady let us back on the next train for free tho, after using some SWA charm on her. Those southern ladies just can’t help themselves with the SWA charm haha (although she was actually Polish or somink)

TranmereFanI’m just hoping I don’t get that drunk I couldn’t remember the first game back in the league 😀

me too train gets to euston 10am !

Blimey Loyden! You’re getting there early! ... I don’t leave lliverpool until before 11! But stocking up for the journey to wet the whistle! And grease the journey 😀

early start very hot so had a few pints round kings cross =not checking train and ending up in Peterborough !.made it back to stevenage after 2pm. All adds to an another adventure following rovers

Haha, good work Loyden, we missed the train we booked back too, overcooked it a little with fun, the nice Virgin trains lady let us back on the next train for free tho, after using some SWA charm on her. Those southern ladies just can’t help themselves with the SWA charm haha (although she was actually Polish or somink)

All the trains back to Kings Cross after the match were all over the place time wise. I got off mine at Finsbury Park and got the Victoria line to Euston saving the walk time between KC and Euston.Got there 10 minutes before my train was due to leave.

TranmereFanI’m just hoping I don’t get that drunk I couldn’t remember the first game back in the league 😀

me too train gets to euston 10am !

Blimey Loyden! You’re getting there early! ... I don’t leave lliverpool until before 11! But stocking up for the journey to wet the whistle! And grease the journey 😀

early start very hot so had a few pints round kings cross =not checking train and ending up in Peterborough !.made it back to stevenage after 2pm. All adds to an another adventure following rovers

Haha, good work Loyden, we missed the train we booked
back too, overcooked it a little with fun, the nice Virgin trains lady let us back on the next train for free tho, after using some SWA charm on her. Those southern ladies just can’t help themselves with the SWA charm haha (although she was actually Polish or somink)

All the trains back to Kings Cross after the match were all over the place time wise. I got off mine at Finsbury Park and got the Victoria line to Euston saving the walk time between KC and Euston.Got there 10 minutes before my train was due to leave.

Good move Hoots, we literally arrived at Euston at 1833, couldn’t of got any closer to miss it, got on the 1907 though, should of cost us another £84 each if it wasn’t for the nice virgin girl (ahem) And the heat in Stevenage was like being on another planet. May of had something to do with delayed trains.

TranmereFanI’m just hoping I don’t get that drunk I couldn’t remember the first game back in the league 😀

me too train gets to euston 10am !

Blimey Loyden! You’re getting there early! ... I don’t leave lliverpool until before 11! But stocking up for the journey to wet the whistle! And grease the journey 😀

early start very hot so had a few pints round kings cross =not checking train and ending up in Peterborough !.made it back to stevenage after 2pm. All adds to an another adventure following rovers

Haha, good work Loyden, we missed the train we booked
back too, overcooked it a little with fun, the nice Virgin trains lady let us back on the next train for free tho, after using some SWA charm on her. Those southern ladies just can’t help themselves with the SWA charm haha (although she was actually Polish or somink)

The scorer of Stevenage's second goal did exactly the same thing.

All the trains back to Kings Cross after the match were all over the place time wise. I got off mine at Finsbury Park and got the Victoria line to Euston saving the walk time between KC and Euston.Got there 10 minutes before my train was due to leave.

Good move Hoots, we literally arrived at Euston at 1833, couldn’t of got any closer to miss it, got on the 1907 though, should of cost us another £84 each if it wasn’t for the nice virgin girl (ahem) And the heat in Stevenage was like being on another planet. May of had something to do with delayed trains.